Art Dubai

Universe of Water Particles – Gold is a virtual waterfall created in a virtual 3-D space using teamLab’s concept of ultrasubjective space, a term that refers to the depiction of space found in premodern Japanese painting.

Computer-generated water consisting of hundreds of thousands of water particles is virtually poured onto a virtually sculpted rock. The computer calculates the movement of the particles to produce a simulation of water that flows in accordance with the laws of physics. Lines are drawn in relation to a selection of 0.1% of the particles. The sinuousness of the lines depends on the overall interaction of the water particles.

In premodern Japanese painting, oceans, rivers, and other bodies of water were expressed using a series of lines. These lines give the impression of movement and life, as though water was a living entity. This form of expression leads us to explore why premodern people sensed life in rivers and oceans. Universe of Water Particles – Gold fuses the objective world of today’s knowledge with the subjective world of premodern people.

When viewing this artwork, regardless of the fact that the waterfall is a reproduction of physical phenomena, it can be possible to feel a sense of life in the collection of lines.

If, when viewing this artwork - as opposed to a video of a waterfall shot with a video camera—people feel the barrier between themselves and the waterfall dissolve, they become immersed in the work as if the waterfall is luring them in. Perhaps we can find a connection to the way premodern Japanese people perceived the world and consequently behaved towards it.

If we regard ourselves as part of nature, and consider nature as something not just to be observed, it is possible to feel that there is no boundary between ourselves and nature.

The movement of waves in water is simulated in a computer-generated three-dimensional space. The water is expressed as a continuous body after calculating the interactions of hundreds of thousands of particles. To visualize the waves, the behavior of the particles of the water was then extracted and lines were drawn in relation to the movement of the particles. The wave created in a 3-D space is then turned into an artwork in accordance with what teamLab refers to as ultrasubjective space.In premodern Japanese painting, oceans, rivers, and other bodies of water were expressed as a series of lines. These lines give the impression of life, as though water was a living entity. This form of expression leads us to question why premodern people sensed life in rivers and oceans. Also, why did they behave as if they themselves were a part of nature? Perhaps something can be discovered by fusing the fixed objective world of today’s common knowledge with the subjective world of premodern people.While viewing this artwork, if we feel a sense of life in the collection of lines—what can be called the subjective world of premodern people—then perhaps this is one aspect of objective recognition.When viewing this artwork, as opposed to watching waves shot with a video camera, people may feel that the barrier between themselves and the waves disappears. They feel immersed in the work, perhaps even feeling life in the collection of lines, as if the waves are luring them in. Perhaps we can find a connection to the way premodern Japanese people perceived the world and consequently behaved toward the world.If we regard ourselves as a part of nature, and consider nature not just as something to be observed, we might join premodern people in perceiving rivers and oceans as living entities. This is a way of seeing the world that lures us in and allows us to feel that there is no boundary between ourselves and nature.

Neither a prerecorded animation nor on loop, the artwork is rendered in real time by a computer program. The interaction between the viewer and the installation causes continuous change in the artwork. Previous visual states can never be replicated, and will never reoccur. The flowers bud, grow, and blossom before their petals begin to wither and eventually fade away. The cycle of growth and decay repeats itself in perpetuity. Depending on the proximity of the viewer to the work, the flowers shed their petals all at once, whither and die, or come to life and blossom once again.

The scenery of Tashibunosho has been unchanged for thousands of years. It is depicted here through the lives of the people who continue to live in harmony with nature in this perpetual landscape. The depicted landscape and people’s lives change in the picture throughout the year. The picture changes throughout the day. It grows brighter as the sun rises, and it becomes aglow with the setting sun. As the night deepens, darkness sets in. The lives of the people depicted changes together with the flow of time. During the season of the Harvest festival, people will start playing music and dancing at night. The artwork synchronises with the actual sunrise and sunset at Tashibunosho. When it is actually raining in Tabushinosho, it will also rain in the depicted world. The scenery of Tashibunosho has been unchanged for thousands of years, and likewise the scenery of the artwork will continue in perpetuity largely unchanged. But just as the natural landscape is never exactly the same, even though it looks similar, the artwork will look different if looked at the following year. The appearance of the artwork at this moment exists only now; you will never be able to see it again. A new landscape is constantly being created.

The movement of waves in water is simulated in a computer-generated three-dimensional space. The water is expressed as a continuous body after calculating the interactions of hundreds of thousands of particles. To visualize the waves, the behavior of the particles of the water was then extracted and lines were drawn in relation to the movement of the particles. The wave created in a 3-D space is then turned into an artwork in accordance with what teamLab refers to as ultrasubjective space.

In premodern Japanese painting, oceans, rivers, and other bodies of water were expressed as a series of lines. These lines give the impression of life, as though water was a living entity.

This form of expression leads us to question why premodern people sensed life in rivers and oceans. Also, why did they behave as if they themselves were a part of nature? Perhaps something can be discovered by fusing the fixed objective world of today’s common knowledge with the subjective world of premodern people.

While viewing this artwork, if we feel a sense of life in the collection of lines—what can be called the subjective world of premodern people—then perhaps this is one aspect of objective recognition. When viewing this artwork, as opposed to watching waves shot with a video camera, people may feel that the barrier between themselves and the waves disappears. They feel immersed in the work, perhaps even feeling life in the collection of lines, as if the waves are luring them in. Perhaps we can find a connection to the way premodern Japanese people perceived the world and consequently behaved toward the world.

If we regard ourselves as a part of nature, and consider nature not just as something to be observed, we might join premodern people in perceiving rivers and oceans as living entities. This is a way of seeing the world that lures us in and allows us to feel that there is no boundary between ourselves and nature.

In the background, cherry blossoms bloom and scatter, the cycle of life repeats. From the center of the background a circle is born which increases in size with a constant rhythm. Depending on the circle the light and darkness of the background world changes.

teamLab (f. 2001) is an international art collective, an interdisciplinary group of various specialists such as artists, programmers, engineers, CG animators, mathematicians and architects whose collaborative practice seeks to navigate the confluence of art, science, technology, and the natural world.

teamLab aims to explore the relationship between the self and the world and new perceptions through art. In order to understand the world around them, people separate it into independent entities with perceived boundaries between them. teamLab seeks to transcend these boundaries in our perception of the world, of the relationship between the self and the world, and of the continuity of time. Everything exists in a long, fragile yet miraculous, borderless continuity of life.

teamLab’s works are in the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney; Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide; Asian Art Museum, San Francisco; Asia Society Museum, New York; Borusan Contemporary Art Collection, Istanbul; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne; and Amos Rex, Helsinki.